Obituary of Marilyn Joan St. Clair

Her Legacy… Marilyn Joan St. Clair, passed away on November 13, 2020 in Oroville, California. She was born in Fresno, California on July 1, 1929 to Evelyn Holmes Miller and Stanley Miller, both of Fresno, California. She lived a long, love filled life, she was 91 years old. In 1947, after graduating from Roosevelt High School, Marilyn (Joan is the name she went by most) attended Fresno Hospital School of Nursing. While training at the hospital she met the love of her life Donald St. Clair who was interning at the hospital. They married in June 1949. Joan completed her nursing degree in 1953. Joan and Don enjoyed 71 years of a deep and loving marriage and together they raised five daughters: Jennifer, Judy, Jeri, Jill and Jannelle. She was a caring, devoted and amazing mother to all her daughters and grandchildren. She was a fishing enthusiast and an avid camper. There were many fun filled camping trips with Don and the five girls in tow! In 1971, Joan and Don moved the family from Pomona to Fremont, Ca. While there raising her children, Joan continued her passion for art. She earned a BA and a Master of Fine Arts from San Jose State University. She also became an avid photographer with her own darkroom. In 1981, with children grown, Joan and Don moved to Oroville, CA to escape the hurried crowded life of the city. While serving as an office manager for her husband Dr. Donald St. Clair, she finally found time to do some serious painting. She has worked in many mediums, but eventually found that pastel was her favorite. Working from photographs taken from her digital camera she manipulated them with Photoshop for the desired image to paint. Joan was a studio artist primarily but did enjoy Plein Aire on occasion (painting outside in nature). During retired years, she and Don traveled to many Plein Aire workshops together, Don supporting her passion of art with her. She studied with many art masters and received numerous awards and held many one man shows. But her favorite achievement was attaining Signature Status in the Pastel Society of the West Coast. She used her first name Marilyn to sign all of her paintings. Joan was most of all a wife, a mother and grandmother that consistently and persistently cared for all her family, with a deep passion and above all for her husband Donald who went to prepare for her arrival to meet him in heaven just last July. Her Family… Marilyn Joan is survived by her 5 daughters: Jennifer, Judy, Jeri, Jill and Jannelle; 10 grandchildren: Ryan, Brandon, Jody, Donovan, Jannelle, David, Rachel, Garrett, Fred, and Jacob and also 14 great grandchildren. She’s predeceased by her two sisters, Jean and Jan and is survived by her brother Bill Miller and his wife Lynn. Her Farewell Service… A memorial service will be held on Tuesday, December 8, 2020 at 11:00 AM at Ramsey Funeral Home, 1175 Robinson Street Oroville, California Arrangements are entrusted to Ramsey Funeral Home 530-534-3877.